Quick tip: Notice how Byron uses weather imagery like "dew of the morning" to foreshadow his tears - this pathetic fallacy technique is common in Romantic poetry!

Remember: This poem's all about scale - Shelley moves from small fountains to massive oceans, suggesting love makes you part of something bigger than yourself.

Key insight: The lack of stanza breaks shows how the speaker sees this as a natural unfolding of events - he doesn't recognise how twisted his actions are.

Analysing technique: Notice how the collective pronoun "we" only appears at the very end - he's created the unity he wanted, but through murder rather than mutual love.

Sonnet structure: The octave presents the problem (obsessive thoughts), while the sestet offers the solution (physical presence over mental preoccupation).

Language technique: The enjambement in "rove / Over tedious riddles" mimics how her eyes wander around his face, showing her boredom with their relationship.

Modern relevance: Written in an era of increasing digital communication, this poem celebrates the more personal, tangible connection of physical letters.

Social context: Remember this was written when women had very few legal rights - they couldn't vote, own property after marriage, or easily divorce.

Feminist reading: Notice how the bride has no voice in this poem - everything is filtered through the farmer's perspective, reflecting how women's experiences were often silenced.